Writes about London plays; wishes CD had been of the party.
Writes about London plays; wishes CD had been of the party.
Would like to know when he can call on the Herschels.
Regrets to hear of the poor health of Sir William Herschel. Would like a few lines of Sir William's handwriting for his autograph collection.
Windy passage across Channel. Will arrive home in two days.
Expects to be home in one week. May be delayed at Calais by astronomers' trigonometrical operations. JH's and Charles Babbage's excursion from Berne to foot of Alps. Visited [P. E.] Fellenberg at Hofwyl.
Missed JH (traveling with Charles Babbage) when they passed through Dijon. Provides some barometric observations along with a comparison of measuring instruments. Appears to be commenting on some of Charles Babbage's interests in statistics, and believes that G. W. Leibniz did some work in this also, but died before publishing it. [Parts of this letter illegible.]
Letter of thanks for greetings from JH.
Provides a detailed critique of a mathematical paper by [J. M. H.] Wronski, which JP presented on Wronski's behalf to the R.S.L. Suggests that JP urge Wronski to withdraw the paper.
Thanks for forwarding notice on journal to [F.] Fallows. Hopes to use the longitudinal differences of English observations to improve observations.
Has had a visit from Mr. Cox. Regarding payment of carriage for parcel from Vienna. Will be visiting him on Tuesday.
Is glad he is coming on Tuesday. Regarding the parcel of books from Vienna. Recent experiments with mercury.
Was pleased to receive his letter. He too has been travelling abroad. Outlines his travels. Expects JH has a good collection of sketches. Saw Louis XVIII at Paris.
Received Smith's letter of January 1818. Requests Smith's advice and determination on enclosed plants, since Smith is "unanimously considered the prince of botanists and the world's oracle on matters botanical"; has not added any cryptogamic plants, considering it impossible to add anything to Smith's already complete collection, but includes a catalogue of Germany's mosses.
Has sought Robert Brown's "Prodromus Florae Novae Hollandiae" in vain, and is told the author has suppressed it. Both he and Dr [Carl Bernhard von] Trinius [(1778-1844)], author of "Fundamenta Agrostopraphiae", think Smith's 'Alopecurus alpinus' is interesting; requests specimens.
Requests return of autographs of [Jean-Jacques] Rousseau [(1712-1778), philosopher], [Nicolas de] Condorcet [(1743-1794)], [William] Hogarth [(1697-1764)], and Ramsay, if Nichols has them. Hopes "Linnaean correspondence" is selling well, has not yet seen it reviewed.